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positivity

People like to talk about the idea of “hitting the ground running.” You’ve surely heard of this concept – you’ll get a lot more done if you get a quick start. It turns out the actual reality of hitting the ground running is disappointingly unhelpful. However, the thought behind it makes sense – if you can give yourself a head start in the morning, then you’ll have momentum throughout the day.

It is that kind of momentum we need to aim for when we first get out of bed. If we can start our motor running in the first hour after waking up, then the whole day becomes easier. It’s hard to be a morning person – they always seem so annoying when you’re not one – but even just thinking “today’s going to be different” can help. It may mean forcing yourself to think and work differently, but it’s worth it.

First Step: Wake Up With A Smile

Are you one of those people who wakes up and lies there for a while? Hoping that you’ll hear on the news that a rogue solar event has wiped out the road system and you don’t need to go to work? Okay, so most people will answer yes to the first, no to the second. But it can be hard to warm up in the morning.

What some people don’t know is that smiling – forcing it, if you have to – releases endorphins. If you can force a smile for a few minutes, you will actually feel better. You’ll feel better yet if you can remember a joke or a happy memory to trigger the smile, but beggars can’t be choosers.

Second Step: Brush Your Teeth

-Remember you only need a pea-sized amount of toothpaste! 🙂

To make yourself more enthusiastic and get the day going forward, it is smart to wash your face and brush your teeth as soon as possible. The splashing of water on your face and the scrub of the facecloth get blood flowing. Brushing your teeth makes everything feel fresher, even if you are just about to go downstairs and drink coffee. And floss, too. Your mouth will thank you. As the saying says, “Only floss the teeth you wish to keep.” Using a good water flosser – you can check out some options with reviews at ibreathbad.com – will make a big difference.

Third Step: Be Annoyingly Cheerful

This one works particularly well if you aren’t someone who is naturally cheerful. Just singing in the shower or talking in a positive way can jerk your mindset into the more optimistic lane. As long as you’re not singing Radiohead’s greatest hits, of course. You may love them, but they are not morning-time fight music. Something upbeat will work better. An upside to being annoyingly cheerful is other people’s reactions – that alone will make you laugh.

Sometimes you’re going to wake up and not be your best self. It’s the case for a lot of us. You might need to fake it until you feel it, but this makes it more natural in future. And once you’ve got that under control, no-one can stop you. If only all the morning people got together to take over the world, the night-owls wouldn’t know what hit them.

I took photography as a hobby recently and discovered how much I love being outside, enjoying the peaceful mornings, nature, capturing moments forever…amongst other things. I realized that it’s beautiful sights like this one that make me feel so grateful and bring a smile to my face. (It’s the little things!)

I’m reading The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and I came across this lovely quote:

“It is the possibility, of having a dream come true, that makes life interesting.”

So, what’s your dream? What do you hope to achieve someday? What would you do if money wasn’t a concern? (Or health?) How does your perfect day look like? What do you do on your free time that if you got paid for would be like heaven?

These are just some questions I find to be quite necessary for us to ask once in a while; to get a feeling of how we’re doing, if we need to change anything, how the life plan is going, etc.

Unfortunately not many people ask themselves these questions; so they live their lives almost in autopilot – study, work work work, marriage, kids, retirement, death. There’s nothing wrong with that scenario, if that’s what you want. But if you don’t – change your situation. Ask yourself these questions. Move little by little towards your goal, your dream life, your perfect day. Don’t let anyone tell you what you *should* be doing.